Avatar: The Last Firebender
by starts-with-M
Summary: AU. Where everything changed when the Earth Kingdom attacked. On hiatus, accepting co-authors.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is a brief preview for an AU I've been dabbling with of late. I basically took Avatar: TLA, mixed up some backstories, added a healthy dose of crazy, and spit this out. I'm still developing everything, and I have bigger stories planned, so if you want more, you must leave a review. I'm insisting on three before I update again, which doesn't seem too much to ask, given the size of the Avatar fandom. Just click the box and drop me a couple lines. Alright? Good. I'll consider any ideas anyone throws my way as well, if you're interested. All you have to do is hit that button.

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Air…Water…Earth…Fire.

My grandmother used to tell me stories about the old days, a time of peace when the Avatar kept balance between the Water Tribes, Earth Kingdom, Fire Nation, and Air Nomads. But that all changed when the Earth Kingdom attacked.

Only the Avatar mastered all four elements. Only he could stop the relentless earthbenders. But when the world needed him most, he vanished.

A hundred years have passed and the Earth Kingdom is nearing victory in the war. Two years ago, my father and the men of my tribe journeyed to the Air Temples to help fight against the Earth Kingdom, leaving me and my brother to look after our tribe.

Some people believe that the Avatar was never reborn into the Fire Nation and that the cycle is broken, but I haven't lost hope. I still believe that somehow the Avatar will return to save the world.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: First things first: I am so sorry for not updating sooner. I do not plan on making a habit out of this, I just happen to be particularly bad at first chapters. Originally this was going to be longer, with snippets from other main characters as well, but one of those snippets evolved into a full-fledged chapter that I should have up as soon as tomorrow. I would be posting it now, but based on your reviews there was some confusion over who the Avatar is, and I thought I would try and clear that up because yeah, this AU is kinda complex. Speaking of reviews- oh my stars, were you all amazing. I couldn't have asked for more. I ask for three reviews and you give me twelve. I won't be doing that again, I promise, I just wanted some feedback. So…yeah. Have fun doing whatever you're doing. Peace.

EDIT: So I tacked this on, because it would've seemed out of place in its own chapter. Tell me what you think about Lu Ten- he was surprisingly difficult to write for, because there is practically no basis for his character. Seriously. It was hard.

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A Fire Nation soldier sprinted through the corridors of the palace, panting beneath his heavy armor. The summer air hung hot and still, thick with some unnamed tension. The clacking of metal boots on the stone floors interrupted silence as he turned a corner and continued his run. Powering through the last stretch of hallway, the soldier burst through a pair of stone doors and stumbled into a garden. A young man sitting by a small pond barely moved, only bothering to tilt his head towards the winded man.

"Yes?" the boy rasped. His eyes were still focused on the water before him.

The soldier gulped for breath. "Avatar Zuko," he wheezed. "A summons for you- from the Crown Prince." He clutched at his metal breastplate, trying to still his heaving chest.

Zuko continued to gaze forward. "Hm. What did he want?"

"The prince requested your presence in the dragons' hearth immediately. Urgent business, he said it was."

"Hm," he murmured again. "Alright. Tell my cousin I'll be there shortly."

"Yes, Avatar," said the soldier, but then hesitated. "Also-"

Zuko turned towards the man. The guard's eyes widened underneath his helmet as he caught sight of the flaming scar stretching across the Avatar's face. "What?" Zuko questioned. His voice contained the barest hint of something dangerous. The soldier gulped.

"The prince said for you to bring your swords, sir. Your swords and your armor."

\- ···· ·· ··· / ·· ··· / ·- / -··· ·-· ·- -·-

Zuko mounted the stairs to the dragons' hearth silently, his unease growing with each step. The air grew more humid as he moved closer to the volcanic cave in which royalty's dragons resided. By the time he had reached the entrance, his tunic was sticky with sweat. He paused for a moment, scanning the darkened cave for his cousin. "Hello!" he called out, feeling slightly foolish. "Lu Ten?"

"Over here!"

Zuko jogged further into the shadows, his eyes adjusting as it darkened. He made his way towards the back of the cave, where his cousin stood next to a red dragon that was stretched out on the rocky floor. Zuko bowed as he approached.

"My prince. Why have you summoned me?"

"Drop the crap, Zuko," Lu Ten deadpanned. Zuko looked at him in surprise.

"Fine. What's going on? Why did you bring me here?"

"The Earth Kingdom has attacked."

Zuko froze. "What?"

"The Earth Kingdom attacked. They raided the southern isles yesterday. The news reached the palace this morning." He paused. "No one survived."

They stood in silence for a moment as Zuko tried to comprehend. "So they finally carried through with their threats." Another silence. "What does that have to do with me?"

"As the Avatar, you have a duty to maintain balance between the nations. The Earth Kingdom has declared war with the rest of the world. It will be your responsibility to stop them." Lu Ten locked eyes with his cousin, his amber eyes startlingly fierce. "Zuko, you have to leave."

The Avatar blinked, stunned. "I have to _leave_?" he asked, voice cracking. He cleared his thoat. "What are you saying? I can't just leave. I have a responsibility- to the Fire Nation, to you and Uncle-"

"Zuko." Lu Ten looked at his cousin, his face filled with some infinite sadness. "They're marching on the capital now. You have to go."

Zuko stared back. Wordlessly, he walked over to the dragon, pulling himself onto the beast's scaly neck. The dragon rumbled and rose to its feet.

"Wait."

Rider and mount both turned to look. Lu Ten quickly walked up to him, pulling off his crown piece and holding it up to him. "Here."

Zuko looked at him oddly. "But this is a royal artifact. It's supposed to be worn by the Crown Prince."

In return he got another sad smile. "I want you to have it."

Zuko hesitated for a moment, then nodded and took the ornament, tucking it into the bag at his side. He paused, looking at Lu Ten intently in the dim light of the cavern. "We'll see each other again. I swear it." He bowed. "Upon my honor."

Lu Ten bowed back. "Upon your honor. Now go."

Zuko looked at him for one more second, then turned. "Roku, fly," he commanded, and the great dragon went. Lu Ten stood as they took off, watching them grow smaller the distance. "You were wrong," he whispered. "This was our last."


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Hey, look, it took me less than a month this time! Yay! I updated the last chapter, so you'll probably want to go read that- it helps make more sense out of this... whatever this is. Right now it's mostly a mishmash of character introductions. Speaking of introductions, this chapter's another one. I bet a lot of you are wondering who takes Zuko's place if he's the Avatar. This is when you find out. I had someone guess that it would be Haru... sorry for the spoiler, but it's not. He shows up soon enough, though. No worries. So- have fun reading, go check out that update, and pretty pretty please review. Seriously. It's really the only way I know you like this, cause I'm still figuring all of 's fancy features. And besides, who doesn't love feedback? That's kind of why I post. To improve based on feedback.

...Yeah. Rant over. Enjoy your chapter.

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"Princess Toph." The name echoed in the high stone ceilings of the Great Hall, and robes rustled as the princess entered. Servants flanking the door bowed, and she flicked her hand as she walked into the Grand Hall. "Leave us."

They bowed again and exited. Toph walked slowly up to her throne and seated herself. There was a moment of silence before she spoke. Her voice was stiff, and contained none of her internal irritation at seeing her guest. "Long Feng. I welcome you to my palace and my city. I was informed that you have requested an audience with me." Toph asked no questions, as was custom. To question was to show weakness, and to show weakness was to surrender authority. No high-ranking citizen of the Earth Kingdom would ever ask a question in an official setting. Certainly not the Crown Princess, especially in the presence of a key figure from Omashu's rival city of Ba Sing Se.

Neither would the leader of there Dai Li do such a thing. "Indeed I did. As I'm sure you know, the matter of capturing the Avatar and winning the war is one long-standing and much discussed. In order to fully complete our conquest, we must either join our cities-"

"-or capture the Avatar. Yes, I know," Toph finished for him. "However, it seems like this is a discussion that should be held with my king."

Long Feng looked at her. It was a look that said, _I-know-something-you-don't-and-I'm-about-to-use-that_. Toph hated that look. "As a matter of fact, I have already discussed this with King Bumi. We reached a consensus on the issue this very morning."

"Hm." Under her cool facade, she was twitching. "Well?"

"It was decided," Long Feng drawled in way that sent shivers up Toph's spine, "that you would be the one to capture the Avatar."

Toph blinked, stunned, and deadpanned: "What."

"Or," he continued with a disconcerting look of satisfaction, "you are to be wed to the Crown Prince before the new moon."

Across the palace, a guard suddenly found himself hurtling into the air, courtesy of an abruptly formed stone pillar beneath him.

"WHAT?!" Toph shrieked, her stony front shattering at the mention of the prince. Long Feng might have smirked at her reaction if it wasn't so dangerous. As it was, he sat coyly and nodded.

"Just as you said before, Princess, it is the only way to win the war."

"Marry HIM?! That GIT?!" Long Feng pursed his lips. "I would appreciate it if you would not insult the prince in my presence."

"You- UGH!" she screeched, and pounded the floor with her foot. The next second Long Feng was sitting twenty meters higher atop a stone pillar and Toph was stomping out of the room. The servants stared as their princess stormed out. Long Feng bent himself down and brushed dust off his clothes, watching Toph's retreating figure as the great doors slammed. He smiled.

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Toph stalked out of the room, fuming. She stamped past the guards, not sure where she was going, but marching furiously nonetheless. "That stupid, overbearing prick," she muttered. "Find the Avatar, or marry that wind-brained despot? The nerve of the little…" She continued to grouse under her breath, wandering around the palace, until she heard a slick voice behind her.

"Princess Toph."

She gritted her teeth and turned, already knowing who she would find. "Haru. What're you doing here?"

Haru peeled himself off the pillar he was leaning against, smirking at her. "Oh, you know. Just hanging around. Lovely city you've got."

"Uh-huh." Toph was unconvinced. She knew him better than that. The prince of Ba Sing Se never did anything without a reason. "Why're you really here?"

He grinned. "Right to the point, I see. Alright. I'm sure my advisor Long Feng has already told you about the agreement reached with King Bumi this morning. You know, capture the Avatar or marry me?" His face turned to stone, and he looked her in the eyes. "I'm encouraging you to choose the second."

Toph's gaze narrowed. "Why would I do something like that?"

He leaned in, his eyes glittering with something hard and dangerous. "C'mon, Toph. Capture the Avatar? Really? The Fire Nation was wiped out ages ago. If he isn't already dead, which is almost certain, he'd be ancient. There's no way he could possibly pose that much of a threat."

"He'd be about as old as King Bumi," Toph observed slowly. "And Oma knows that he's a force to be reckoned with."

Haru brushed this off easily. "Perhaps, but the Avatar is a firebender. He would hardly have the strength or fortitude of the strongest earthbender in the world."

Toph bristled slightly at this, a fact that Haru did not fail to notice. He continued, "Anyway, it's not all that important. Even if he was a threat, the Earth Kingdom could take him easily- but only with our two cities united. Face it, our marriage and the union of the two cities would win the war. Our enemies would be crushed underneath our feet. It's the only way." A tone of fervor tinged his voice, and his face lit up as he spoke.

"I'm inclined to disagree." Toph swept passed him, and he straightened. She called, without looking back, "I'm leaving immediately, so I don't expect to see you anytime soon. And I'll be coming back with the Avatar." She glanced over her shoulder, giving a look filled with malice.

"Goodbye, _Prince_ Haru." With that she walked away quickly, green robes rustling. Haru smirked again, and called to her retreating figure, "You can run, Toph, but you can't hide! Destiny always gets its due!" Her fading voice echoed back to him. "Not with me!"


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Oh stars. Guys, I am so sorry. I literally have no explanation as to why this is so late. Someone feel free to Gibbs-slap me. I totally deserve it. **

**On the other hand, you guys rock, and I love you all. So because you totally deserve it, I'm writing oneshots for my first three reviewers. Anyone you want set in this universe doing almost anything you want. If it's going to interfere with the plot, then I'll figure something else out.**

**To answer a few questions:**

**-No, Toph is not blind. But don't quit the story yet, because someone else is, and it's super-important to Toph's development. Plus blind!- is a cutie.**

**-Yes, there will be romance. I'm just not going to say who I'm shipping yet. That's also important to the plot.**

**-Yes, there is a reason Haru is a slimeball besides the fact that I don't like his mustache. That thing is weird…**

**If you gave any other questions, leave me a review. I tried to find all of them, but my mailbox is such a mess I can't find squat. Oh, and let me know if anyone seems OOC. I was having trouble; I'm not terribly excellent at writing either of these characters. Enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I own my writing, nothing else.**

The gentle splashing of waves licking the side of a canoe filled the quiet of the icy landscape. The craft pulled to a stop alongside one of the glaciers littered about the bay, and the rower exited onto the ice. Katara surveyed her surroundings. Snow and sea filled the landscape for miles; she was completely isolated. She smiled. It was perfect.  
Standing by the edge of the ice, Katara took a deep breath and stretched her hands above the water licking below. Hesitantly, she motioned her hands, pushing and pulling at the water until it moved with her. One good yank tugged a blob of water loose from the waves.

It was absolutely thrilling. Katara whipped the water through the air aimlessly, reveling in her control over the liquid. After a moment, she focused herself again, letting the saltwater drop back to its source. She had come out to find something big to work with, something out of the ordinary. She wanted a challenge.  
Katara's eyes locked on the iceberg in front of her. It wasn't huge, at least not compared to some of the glaciers in the vicinity; nevertheless, it was safe to say that Katara had yet to manage bending something that large. The waterbender grinned and raised her hands in front of her.

As she reached out, Katara could feel the iceberg. The cold silence of the ice and the throbbing seawater underneath were tangible, calling to her, begging to be bent, and she had to oblige. She wrenched up her arms and pulled, tugging the water around it farther and farther up. As the water rose, so did the iceberg, revealing an unnaturally rounded underside. Katara continued to draw it out of the water, letting the berg-bulb crash onto a floe even larger than it. She pulled and pulled, struggling to retain control and yet still gritting her teeth and refusing to give in. She tried to push herself into strength, thinking of Sokka and his mocking remarks of magic; her father leaving her and the tribe and setting out for the Air Temples; the hard green eyes that came in the last memories of her mother. Katara thought herself into a fury, and suddenly the iceberg was out of the ocean and she was on her hands and knees, panting. She glanced up at her handiwork, and despite her weariness, pride blossomed in her chest. _Ha_, she mulled tiredly, _if only Sokka could see me now-_

But her satisfaction was short lived as some part of the ice sphere cracked, and Katara found herself shielding her eyes from the sudden explosion of blue power that erupted from within. She blinked as the light began to fade, lowering her hand and squinting at the sight before her. A male figure lay encased in the ice and she paused for a moment, stunned. Then she unfroze and scrambled over the ice, pounding on the ice to try and break it. "Come on, Katara, think," she whispered to herself. "What would a master do?" She racked her brain for a moment. Then, summoning every ounce of concentration she had, raised her arms and lifted some water with them. Swirling the water above her head with a look of utter focus on her face, she slammed the liquid into the glacier. The remaining ice shattered, and Katara leapt forward to catch the boy as he slumped to the ground. She stared down at him for a moment. Shaggy black hair fell into his closed eyes from a half-done topknot, but the bangs couldn't hide the seared skin that marked his face. Katara's eyes widened a fraction. Then he shot up, eyes suddenly open, and she scrambled back.

"Eek!"

Katara grabbed the closest thing she could find, which happened to be a largish piece of ice, ad gripped it like a knife in her hand. Her knees bent into a crouch and she clutched the shard as she watched the boy, ready to attack. The boy blinked a few times before turning to look at her. He noticed her fighting stance, but simply stood, surprisingly calm, and intoned in a raspy voice, "Put down the ice."

She didn't answer but to shift her position and clenched her weapon tighter. The boy sighed. He had the nerve to sound annoyed. "Look, I'm not going to hurt you."

"Oh really?" Katara found her voice. "Who are you? Why were you frozen in the ice?" And then, as an afterthought: "And how are you not dead?"

"From what, the ice or the look you're giving me?" Katara's dirty glare intensified. The boy held up his hands. "Fine, fine." He shrugged, hands still raised, but said nothing else. Not too surprising; he already didn't strike her as the talkative type. But his eyes- eye- widened, and he suddenly clambered to his feet.

"ROKU!" He called. "Roku, where are you?"

The waterbender wondered ever-so-briefly if he was mad, but the thought was interrupted by a snuffling, growly sound that rose from behind a ridge. The boy skidded down out of sight, and Katara followed with the practiced ease of one well-accustomed to the ice. When she reached the bottom, she found herself gaping and contemplating her own sanity instead.

It was a dragon.

A massive, crimson-scaled monstrosity, curled up in a hollow of ice. The scarred boy had run up to its side, muttering concernedly. The dragon answered to whatever he said with an affirmative snort, minute jets of flame spurting from its nostrils. Katara stared in disbelief.

"It's a- a-"

"Dragon, yes." The boy didn't bother to cease his inspection the dragon's scales. "You act like you've never seen one."

"Cause I haven't!" Katara spluttered. "They're extinct!"

He raised an eyebrow, still not looking up. "I wouldn't go that far. Rare, yes, but not extinct."

"No, they're extinct," she pressed. "They were wiped out when the Fire Nation was attacked."

He froze, now turning to look at her. "What did you say?"  
"They were wiped out-"

"No. The Fire Nation."

"What, the attack?" The boy nodded curtly.

"Yes. What do you know? What's happening?"

Now it was Katara's turn to raise an eyebrow. "The Earth Kingdom attacked the Fire Nation and obliterated the firebenders. It happened years ago. How do you not know that? It's common knowledge, even down here."

The boy's legs almost gave out from underneath him, and the dragon nudged him with its snout. He grabbed a scale to steady himself. "Obliterated?" He repeated, voice cracking slightly. "Years?"

Katara nodded uncertainly. His reaction seemed a bit extreme, and confused her thoughly.

"But that would mean-" He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then suddenly straightened and looked her in the eye, filled with new composure. "My name is Zuko. I think we need to talk."


End file.
